Arts of combat: Keralites try their hand at new martial arts
Martial arts other than Kalaripayattu, Karate and Kung Fu are gaining acceptance in Keralam. Tiki Rajwi meets some of the trainers and practitioners of combat sports to understand the changing trends
In the 2023 martial arts film The Fist of the Condor, the antagonist performed a horse stance, a distinctive move of the Kalaripayattu martial art. Marko Zaror, the film's star, reached out to Kalaripayattu practitioner Eyal Meyer to incorporate this technique into the movie. Meyer, who had been practicing Kalaripayattu since 2006, agreed enthusiastically to the collaboration.
Meanwhile, in Keralam, the birthplace of Kalaripayattu, a different martial arts revolution is unfolding. In Thiruvananthapuram, 19-year-old Muhammed Aiman S. plans to undergo a three-month training regimen for Sanda, a full-contact Chinese sport, ahead of the University Games in December. Sanda, mixed martial arts (MMA), Muay Thai, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) are now popular combat sports in Keralam, alongside the traditional martial arts like Karate, Kalaripayattu, and Kung Fu.
Aiman trains at the Johny Brothers Fight Club, where he devotes two daily training sessions to Sanda. He began his combat sports journey at a young age, accumulating medals in sub-junior and junior categories at the state and national levels. Recently, Aiman secured two victories in professional fights.
Ann Mary Philip, a 42-year-old from Edapally in Kochi, took up combat sports in her later years and has won a match in Thailand. Her journey began with kickboxing in 2018, which evolved into Muay Thai, boxing, and Sambo under the guidance of her coach Kiran V.S. of SpaRing combat sports gym. At 42, Ann made her boxing debut and retirement match the same year, as she had reached the age limit for amateur matches.
These individuals exemplify the new generation of combat sports enthusiasts in Keralam. While traditional martial arts previously dominated the scene, today, MMA and Muay Thai clubs are gaining immense popularity in cities like Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram, and Kozhikode, and even in smaller towns. Social media and YouTube have played a pivotal role in introducing combat sports to the younger generation, who are drawn to the practicality and quick results these sports offer, as opposed to the more traditional forms of martial arts.
Written by urgent.news from The Hindu's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
